September 26, 2006	Tuesday	Ramazan 2, 1427

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ISLAMABAD Sept 25: The government intends to summon a National Assembly session, probably in the first week of October, to pass the protection of women’s rights bill.

The last NA session had to be prorogued on September 18 after the ruling coalition failed to achieve a consensus on the bill even in 46 days during which the lower house of the parliament was in session.

Talking to Dawn on Sunday, Minister for Parliamentary Affairs Dr Sher Afgan Khan Niazi said: “We are determined to convene the lower house session within one week of president Pervez Musharraf’s return from the US in order to get the bill passed without further delay.”

He said the bill would be presented in the house in the same shape in which it was approved by the select committee of the house and not necessarily the one altered on behest of the MMA or the panel of Ulema outside the house.

He brushed aside what he termed ‘proposals of so called Ulema panel’ saying the proposals held no legal value for being outside the purview of the NA select committee – a body competent to make changes in draft.

He said the proposed changes in the bill might be effected at the second or third reading of the bill in the house.

Mr Niazi said the efforts made by PML president Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain to woo MMA outside the parliament were, in fact, aimed at thwarting the PPP-P from making an access to the presidential camp.

He said the PPP-P, by offering unconditional support to the government on the bill, had automatically come on board which was obviously not acceptable to its sworn rivals. He said there were certain forces within the ruling coalition who did not want the bill passed with the support of the PPP.

It was war of wits between the PPP and the PML, the minister said, adding that while the former had offered an unfettered support to the government on the bill, the latter did not feel comfortable with the situation in which it could lose credit.

He said the Ulema, whom he dubbed as Ulema-i-soo (heterodox religious leaders), had no right to propose changes in a bill which was drafted and approved by the house select committee and which was strictly in accordance with the teachings of Holy Quran and Sunnah.

The minister said the select committee had, after detailed discussions, decided to put the offence of ‘rape’ in the category dealt with by Tazeer as securing four pious witnesses, a precondition of ‘Hadd’ was not possible on the earth.

If the select committee, at any stage, had felt that the bill needed further explanation, it had a constitutional way to refer it to the Council of Islamic Ideology (CCI.

The CCI is already extremely angry because the bill was referred to an Ulema committee, instead of this constitutional body, for expert opinion.

So as far the MMA was concerned, Dr Niazi said, it was left with no moral ground to oppose the bill as it had not taken part in its rehashing at the select committee stage nor it took part in voice vote after the first reading.

He said the religious alliance had not resigned from the legislatures on the Balochistan issue and would never tender resignations on Hudood bill.

Meanwhile, MMA’s deputy parliamentary leader Hafiz Hussain Ahmed has said there is no future of the protection of women’s rights bill as it is destined to sink in oblivion.